HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-08-26; Library Board of Trustees; ; LIBRARY REPORT FOR JULY 2020ITEM # 5
Meeting Date: August 26, 2020
To: Library Board of Trustees
From: Sheila Crosby, Interim Deputy Library Director
Sarah Dana, Interim Deputy Library Director
Staff Contact: Sheila Crosby, sheila.crosby@carlsbadca.gov
Sarah Dana, sarah.dana@carlsbadca.gov
Subject: Library Report for July 2020
Recommended Action
Receive report. No action needed.
Executive Summary/Discussion
The board will review the monthly library reports for July 2020. This report provides a summary of work
completed across all Carlsbad City Library divisions and locations as well as services and programs
presented for the community.
Next Steps
None.
Fiscal Analysis
None.
Public Notification
Public notice of this item was posted in keeping with the Ralph M. Brown Act and was available for
public viewing and review at least 72 hours before the scheduled meeting date.
Exhibits
• Narrative for July 2020
• Statistics for July 2020
LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES
ITEM #5
Monthly LIBRARY Report
for
July 2020
Systemwide …
In July, over 22,000 items were checked out to patrons through curbside service. In addition,
more than 23,000 items were returned to the library and book returns are now open 24 hours a
day, seven days a week. Curbside service continues to be available 10 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Monday
through Saturday. In addition to picking up library materials which have been placed on hold,
patrons continued to pick up Summer Reading Adventure rewards and Club Pelican art kits. City
Communications staff created a video to feature the safety measures library staff put in place
for curbside service: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKHPDiwvGYo
Several staff members began new roles with the Library & Cultural Arts Department in July.
Long-time Community Outreach Supervisor Carrie Scott was promoted to interim principal
librarian of the Library Learning Center, filling the vacancy created when Sheila Crosby was
promoted to interim deputy library director in May. Senior Librarian Sarah Dana was promoted
to the second interim deputy library director position, filling the vacancy created when Suzanne
Smithson was promoted to Library & Cultural Arts director. Brian Buchholtz, a part-time
employee of the Parks & Recreation Department was promoted to his new role as the library’s
senior office specialist while long-time part-time library employee Christina Lorenzo was
promoted to full-time library assistant at the Learning Center.
The all-virtual Summer Reading Adventure (SRA) for all ages continued throughout July with an
additional 438 registrations and nearly 277,000 minutes read. SRA registration in July 2020 was
down 61% from July 2019. As reported last month, the closure of library locations mid-March
due to COVID-19 impacted the ability to promote the SRA in-person at all three libraries and at
more than a dozen monthly offsite library programs and outreach events. There has been
overwhelmingly positive feedback from those participating in the program, such as this email
from a local parent: “Thank you so much for your hard work and creative efforts in continuing
the Summer Reading Adventure! My son is four and a half and is truly enjoying his second
experience in completing the reading challenge. I can only imagine that during this crisis, it
poses extra work and energy on your staff and as a parent, and teacher, I am greatly
appreciative. From the online system, to holds and pickups, and rewards – it has been working
seamlessly for us. He was delighted that his reward books were even wrapped as a present and
it felt like a very special treat in the middle of summer at home.”
In conjunction with the SRA, three virtual family shows were held in July with the videos
available for viewing online for a week. They included the Zany Zoe Magic Virtual Show pre-
recorded video, which was watched by 22 viewers; Pacific Animal Productions Facebook Live
event, which attracted 1,602 viewings; and fiddler Celia Lawley, a performance live streamed via
Facebook from Schulman Auditorium, which was watched 231 times. ScienceTellers, a group
combining storytelling with science experiments, had a pre-recorded video that went live July
13 and will be available until Aug. 31.
Monthly Library Report for July 2020
Library Children’s staff, on site Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., answered nearly
400 reference questions by phone and email during the month. Beginning in July, Genealogy &
Carlsbad History Division staff were also on site at Cole Library to answer calls and work on
projects. Staff responded to 50 inquiries, many of which required significant research to
answer.
Library book clubs, now meeting virtually on Zoom, attracted eight new members this month.
Fifty people total attended the four online book discussions with many providing positive
feedback on the opportunity to connect. A book club member sent a handwritten note with this
kind message: “With all the difficulties of COVID-19, I want to thank you for keeping library
services going. I have participated in the library Wednesday Zoom book club, which I really
appreciate during this time of isolation.”
The library continued its virtual concert series, Live From My Living Room, on July 9 with a
concert featuring guitarist, vocalist and composer Nathan McEuen. The concert was streamed
via the library’s Facebook Live, and the video has been viewed 875 times:
https://www.facebook.com/129735310438627/videos/1683037531871592.
Additional July virtual events included a health and wellness workshop on July 14 on Zoom
attended by 14 people, a panel featuring four best-selling authors on July 19 and attended by
48 people, a Zoom lecture on July 23 featuring author and comedian Darryl Littleton and
attended by 20 people, and an introduction to Folklorico dance workshop live streamed on
Facebook on July 30 and viewed 1,800 times:
https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=914484475628551&ref=watch_permalink
Four teens attended the virtual Teen Book Warriors meeting via Zoom on July 21. Teens talked
about how their lives were impacted due to COVID-19, discussed the upcoming school year and
established a list of books to read for August to November. Teen Librarian Ashleigh Hvinden
demonstrated how to use the library catalog and the Teen Space website. Three teens attended
the virtual Teen Advisory Board held via Zoom that same day, where teens shared their
recommendations on how to market the new RB Digital eComics service to other teens. In
addition, the teen librarian revitalized the personalized teen reading recommendation service
and four teens submitted requests in July.
CCL, Dove Lane …
Library Assistant Angelica Mejia conducted bilingual family storytimes each Wednesday
morning in July. These storytimes were streamed live on the Carlsbad City Library’s Facebook
page and were well-received, with a combined total of over 1,070 views. Due to copyright
concerns, only some storytimes will be archived on the library’s Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/carlsbadcitylibrary/videos/
On July 7 and 21, Librarian Ally Goodwin held virtual Book Explorers programs for young
readers with 10 students total participating.
Monthly Library Report for July 2020
Georgina Cole …
Digitization will soon begin on Carlsbad High School yearbooks from 1958 to 2015 in the history
collection. The yearbooks were packed and shipped to Backstage Library Works in Bethlehem,
PA, in early July and staff expect the digitization project to be completed by end of August.
Following digitization, library staff will quality-control check the digital files before the original
volumes are returned to the library. The yearbooks are one of the most popular collections in
the Carlsbad History Collection and digitization will make the collection even more accessible.
After much communication and testing, remote access to the American Ancestors database was
opened to Carlsbad City Library cardholders on July 20, allowing cardholders to access
American Ancestors from home. This was serendipitous timing as the Genealogy Program
meeting, scheduled long-before quarantine, covered the American Ancestors database.
The North San Diego County Genealogical Society (NSDCGS) held three live webinar programs in
July using the society’s GoToWebinar subscription. On July 14, 97 people attended an
Intermediate Genealogy Class taught by Society Member and President Tom Cousineau
covering underused genealogy resources. The July 18 DIG: DNA Interest Group provided an
overview of DNA Painter and had 88 attendees. And at the July 28 program, well-known
genealogy speaker Christine Cohen covered resources available through the American
Ancestors database with 110 attendees.
Learning Center …
Literacy Services tutors who have worked with their learners remotely volunteered 83 hours in
July. All current tutors and learners in the literacy program received a check-in call from staff
and information on resources being offered.
The Read and Play Summer Club for students in grades 1 through 4 met five times via Zoom in
July. During these meetings, club members discussed chapters read from books and played
several educational activities like Find the Word, Show and Tell, and Scattergories, which were
adapted to complement the featured book. Attendees ranged from five to eight participants
per meeting.
Outreach and Community Connections …
Library volunteers for the homebound program spent 8.5 hours this month connecting with
their patrons through email to check in about needs for library materials and discuss coping
with challenges related to social isolation during COVID-19. Staff coordinated deliveries of 39
items to the patrons.
June 15 to Aug. 9, 2020
New Online
Library Accounts
eBooks/eAudiobooks
356 New Users:
18,390 Downloads
258 Added downloadable titles & extra copies
CARLSBAD CITY LIBRARY
500 in July
1,782 April to Current
Curbside Service – Launched June 1
July / June 1 to July 31
25,294 / 41,637 Holds Placed
22,065 / 34,389 Holds Checked Out
3,187 / 7,062 Patrons Used Service
e
Library Webpage
Library@Home
▪Biblioteca en Casa
▪Digital services
▪Adult eBook
recommends
▪Children’s eBook
recommends
▪Youth resources
Visits in July
1,058
Webpage Views
in July
49,660
July
2020
Summer Reading Adventure
Final #’s
1,194 Registrations
491,957 Minutes Read
5,847 Learning Activities (new)
481 Participants Completed
Virtual Programs
•Storytimes
•Living Room Concerts
•Author Talks
•Summer Reading Adventure
Events
•Book clubs
•Workshops
Programs Offered in July
27 New
With over 5,500 views
Homebound Services
Launched June 8
13 Deliveries
39 Items for 8 Patrons
Literacy Services
Launched June 8
83 Instructional Hours
20 Patrons attended Zoom Training
ITEM #5
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